A image of the program for the December 29 and 30, 1902, performance of the Lykens and Wiconisco Minstrels, at the Lykens Opera House, Lykens, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania. The version of the program shown here is from the Lykens Register of December 19, 1902. However, the Lykens Standard of the same date, referred to the group as the Lykens and Wiconisco Colored Minstrels.
The white men (and women) who performed in black-face were not limited to the “end men,” named in the program as “Bones” (George A. Kosier and Joseph Lester) and “Tambourines” (George J. Keen and Charles Boeckler). It is a bit confusing as to why the group performing the minstrel show was referred to by the Standard as “colored.” Was everyone performing in black-face?
Additional members of this performing group who were named were:
Interlocutor – H. E. Sheesley
Tenors – Charles Page; William Bateman; Ed Fennel; Wesley Orndorff; William Evitts
Baritones – Alfred Smallwood; H. R. Sheesley; Vernon Mitchell
Bassos – William Kratzer; George Workman; Dan Matter; William Lebo
The same characters who were named as endmen also appear in skits playing characters called Mr. Black Jack Rose, Sammy-has-been-there-before, and in another skit, Charles Boeckler plays Lueculus, a slave.
The Lykens Standard of January 2, 1903, published a review of the performances, finding that there wasn’t “a single objectionable feature.” However, the evening was destroyed for one lady who was the recipient of a spray tobacco juice that came from the balcony above where she was sitting.
The Lykens Minstrels were greeted by large audiences at the opera house both Monday and Tuesday evenings, and their patrons were treated to two house and a-half of solid fun. There wasn’t a single objectionable feature, and the only thing to mar the pleasure of anyone was the action of some swine in the gallery who squirted tobacco juice over those sitting below. One lady had an elegant hat ruined, and we were pleased that Manager Reiff on being informed of the fact at once offered a liberal reward for information that will lead to the arrest of the guilty parties. We sincerely hope they will be detected and made examples of.
White men and women, who blackened their faces, and performed emphasizing negative stereotypical behavior that they attributed to African Americans, for the purpose of getting laughs were often the most prominent people in the community.
This post is part of a series in which news articles, photographs and other “memorabilia” are presented to show how “black-face” was infused into the culture of the Lykens Valley area. Readers are invited to submit photos and recollections on how long this offensive “entertainment” lasted and what locals thought of it as part of the culture of the area.
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News articles from Newspapers.com.
Corrections and additional information should be added as comments to this post.